is a collection of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese light novel

Light novel

A is a style of Japanese novel primarily targeting junior high and high school students . The term "light novel" is a wasei-eigo, or a Japanese term formed from words in the English language. Light novels are often called or for short...

s by Sekina Aoi, with illustrations by Kira Inugami

Kira Inugami

is a female Japanese manga artist. She often participates in cosplaying events.-Works illustrated:*H2O: Footprints in the Sand artbook & manga*√After and Another artbook-External links:*...

. The series started with the release of the first volume on January 19, 2008, published by Fujimi Shobo

Fujimi Shobo

is a Japanese publishing company that specializes in the publication of light novels, manga, role-playing games and collectible card games. The company started in 1991 as a subsidiary of Kadokawa Shoten.-Magazines published:Light novel magazines...

 under their Fujimi Fantasia Bunko label. Originally the series was called , but was later changed to the sub-title of the first volume, . The series is also referred to as .

Plot and overview

The student council members of Hekiyou Academy in Hokkaidō

Hokkaido

, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...

 are selected by a popularity contest. As a result the members are usually a group of pretty girls

Bishojo

is a Japanese term used to refer to young and pretty girls, usually below university age. Bishōjo is not listed as a word in the prominent Japanese dictionary Kōjien...

. The sole male member is Ken Sugisaki, who entered the student council by becoming the top-scoring student in the level which he had to cram to achieve.

The series revolves around the meetings inside the student council room in . The story (as written in the series) has a metafiction

Metafiction

Metafiction, also known as Romantic irony in the context of Romantic works of literature, is a type of fiction that self-consciously addresses the devices of fiction, exposing the fictional illusion...

 component where, under the student council president Sakurano Kurimu orders, vice president Ken Sugisaki has to write stories to show the other students how brilliant the student council is. Ken negotiates with Fujimi Shobo

Fujimi Shobo

is a Japanese publishing company that specializes in the publication of light novels, manga, role-playing games and collectible card games. The company started in 1991 as a subsidiary of Kadokawa Shoten.-Magazines published:Light novel magazines...

 to publish these stories. The author himself likens the series to that of a yonkoma

Yonkoma

thumb|right|150px|Traditional Yonkoma layout, a comic-strip format, generally consists of gag comic strips within four panels of equal size ordered from top to bottom...

 novel which portrays the characters having comical conversations and parody

Parody

A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...

ing otaku

Otaku

is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests, particularly anime, manga or video games.- Etymology :Otaku is derived from a Japanese term for another's house or family , which is also used as an honorific second-person pronoun...

 culture.

Hekiyou Academy Student Council

Ken is a 2nd Year student, and holds the Student Council "Blue Chip" Seat and Vice President. He entered the student council as the top-scoring student in his year; the highest scoring student has a choice to be in the student council. He had to work hard to improve his score, being in the lowest score bracket when he enrolled. He is referred to as "Kī-kun" by Chizuru, from his given name which also can be read as . Loves playing eroge

Eroge

An or Ero-ga is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content, usually in the form of anime-style artwork. Eroge originated from galge, but unlike galge, they feature erotic/pornographic content.-History:...

 and galge, and plans on making the rest of the student council members his harem. On the surface, he seems to be lazy and carefree, but he is actually very hardworking and always stays behind after dismissal to finish all the student council work so that the student council can have fun as always. Ken also has a serious side to him, and he truly cares for those around him; According to Kurimu, they are yet to find someone who dislikes Ken. Ken reveals to Lilicia that the student council itself is his "dream", where his goals and happiness co-exist.
A unique trivia about Ken is that he starts every episode with behavior that exasperates the other members of the student council, but at the end of each episode Ken always shows his serious side, making the other members of the student council grateful to him. Ken was bullied in the past by his classmates during middle school despite his apparent happiness and two-timed two girls, he even asked to be bullied in middle school. In contrast to his active self in the student council, Sugisaki Ken was often isolated socially in middle school. In the last episode, its revealed that he met all of the girls in the current student council throughout the year before joining, one in each season. Each of the four girls changed his life in some way for the better and help create the perverse and goofy, but kind and hard-working person that he is now. It's because of those encounters that he strived to be in the student council for the sole purpose of repaying them by making all four of the girls happy.

Kurimu is a senior in Hekiyou Academy, and is the president of the student council. She has an extreme sweet tooth, and has a pink/reddish hair. Her nickname is , which was given to her by Chizuru; She added an extra character to her first name, and changed it to and translated to Japanese becomes . Her nickname can also mean . This is often used as a joke against her in the series, poking fun of her childish size and looks, despite being a senior. However, acting childish around Chizuru does not seem to bother her. She is well liked by most of the other students. Most of the episodes start out with Kurimu making a statement in front of a whiteboard. She is the cause of most of Ken's labor and why he became a eroge

Eroge

An or Ero-ga is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content, usually in the form of anime-style artwork. Eroge originated from galge, but unlike galge, they feature erotic/pornographic content.-History:...

 mania. Kurimu and Ken met in the spring (桜野 = field of cherry blossom) when she was Vice President at the time, Ken decided to help her carry boxes. He asked for her help in becoming a better person, and Kurimu suggested playing a dating sim game as she said that the main character's job is to make everyone happy. Their meeting gave him a goal in mind and taught him to look towards the future. Like the season she represents, she's often the first to suggest something and is always looking towards the bigger picture in mind.

Chizuru is the Secretary of the Student Council. She has a tall and model-like figure. She is a mature woman who seems to spend most of her time being quite serious. However, she has a sadistic side to her, which is shown when she "brain-washes" Ken and Kurimu. Also, she makes a lot of references to her sadism in the anime. She loves to cuddle and "abuse" the President (Kurimu) in a little sister way, and is an avid reader. Sometimes, it is hinted towards her wanting to be involved with Kurimu. She is hinted towards having a couple part-time jobs despite being too young legally to even have a job. While she is identified as the cool, serious type, she can embrace her more cutsy side to her once hopping around dressed as a cute sheep. Chizuru and Ken met in autumn (紅葉 = red leaf) when Ken was suffering from a broken heart. Their meeting healed it and showed him compassion for others. Like the season she represents, she always seems a bit gloomy and hard to approach but has a certain elegance to her.

Minatsu is a bold character and Student Council Vice-president. A tomboy with impressive athletic skills, and is surprisingly also good in math, which Ken considers to be uncharacteristic of her. She's popular among girls and has a bit of a yuri taste. She's in the same class with Ken but she's an orthodox tsundere

Tsundere

is a Japanese character development process that describes a person who is initially cold and even hostile towards another person before gradually showing their warm side over time. The word is derived from the terms , meaning to turn away in disgust, and meaning to become 'lovey dovey'...

 without any 'dere' (short for ) to be found. She also has a little sister, Mafuyu. She's very protective of Mafuyu and despises anyone who tries to hurt her. She's is into a lot of Shōnen manga as most of her suggestions tend to be based on typical Shōnen manga plots. Minatsu and Ken met in the summer (深夏 = deep summer). Because of how she was, he looked up to her and to be like her, but she told him that he shouldn't aim to be like her but to aim for the impossible. Their meeting taught him not to be lazy and work if he desires something. Like the season she represents, she's fired up and is always ready to take action, especially when it has something to do with anime or manga.

Mafuyu is the Student Council Treasurer. Minatsu's sister and the only freshman in the Council. She is a swaying bishōjo

Bishojo

is a Japanese term used to refer to young and pretty girls, usually below university age. Bishōjo is not listed as a word in the prominent Japanese dictionary Kōjien...

, and is afraid of males (though she lightens up to Ken). Ken thought her to be "the easiest character to see the ending" but later turns out to be the most feared one by some reason, even when compared to Chizuru, particularly the fact that she's into yaoi

Yaoi

In careful Japanese enunciation, all three vowels are pronounced separately, for a three-mora word, . The English equivalent is . also known as Boys' Love, is a Japanese popular term for female-oriented fictional media that focus on homoerotic or homoromantic male relationships, usually created by...

, and that she fantasizes pairing Ken romantically with a boy named Nakameguro (who turns out to be an actual person). When it comes to yaoi, Mafuyu can actually be just as perverted, if not worse, than Ken. She's addicted to video games, and spends much of her free time playing with a handheld game console

Handheld game console

A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable electronic device with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are run on machines of small size allowing people to carry them and play them at any time or place...

 that resembles a pink PlayStation Portable

PlayStation Portable

The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...

. Despite her shy personality (or based on Ken's logic, because she's shy) she confesses her love to Ken, although she says she just wanted to share her feelings with him rather than start a relationship, because she loves the Student Council's atmosphere most of all, implying that even when she loves him she doesn't want to change how things are at the moment. Mafuyu and Ken met in the winter (真冬 = winter) chatting online with him as Yuki (with Ken as Key) and even having a more spirited personality online. Ken fell asleep once in the snow and, despite her fear of men, took him out of the freezing cold. Their meeting showed him a clear understanding about what strength really is. Like the season she represents, she's extremely passive and keeps a lot to herself, but she will show her real self and her real feelings if she feels comfortable.

Satori is a teacher of Japanese and an advisor of the Student Council. She is also one of primary characters of author's previous work "Material Ghost".

Students

Lilicia is the President of the Journalism Club, and ranked fifth in the school's popularity poll; just falling short of getting into the Student Council. Lilicia and Kurimu are constantly at loggerheads. Lilicia also seems to be extremely afraid of Chizuru. She claims that she despises the current Student Council because they always laze around, doing nothing. She constantly targets Ken for her attacks toward the Student Council for being a two-timing individual, though her sister Elise states that its because she likes him. Despite her repeated attempts to slander the Student Council, she has a mutual respect for them.

Ken and Minatsu's classmate. She is cute but failed to garner votes in the popularity poll due to defects in her character. Subsequently, she became an idol to show them what she could do. She made a film with Ken starring in it, to which the audio from the film was misunderstood by the girls of the student council about Ken's identity.

Meguru's younger brother. He has a crush on Minatsu but she does not notice his feelings.

Meguru and Mamoru are called "" by classmates from their surname.

Nakameguro is Ken and Minatsu's classmate. He transferred to Hekiyou Academy since he was bullied by his classmates at the previous school. He likes Ken better than pushy Space Siblings but Ken does not want to become too close to him because he has the same surname as the character of Mafuyu's BL novels by coincidence as well as looking identical to her pictures of her character.

Other Characters

Lilicia's younger sister. She spent time with Ken at school as part of her sister's plan to dig up information on the student council. Afterward, she states that Ken already knew why she was there and played with her anyway. Because of that, she has taken a liking to Ken, and she addresses him as "onii-sama". She is also quite mature and smart for her age, even managing to get a math problem right before Kurimu did.

A made up Ken's older brother from Minatsu's Fantasy, and Mafuyu also uses the character in her fantasy.

Ken's step-sister.

Ken's childhood friend and former girlfriend.

Manga

A manga adaptation by 10mo started serialization in Fujimi Shobo

Fujimi Shobo

is a Japanese publishing company that specializes in the publication of light novels, manga, role-playing games and collectible card games. The company started in 1991 as a subsidiary of Kadokawa Shoten.-Magazines published:Light novel magazines...

's shōnen manga magazine Dragon Age Pure

Dragon Age Pure

was a Japanese shōnen manga magazine published by Fujimi Shobo. It was first released on January 30, 2006 and was initially sold quarterly. Starting with the sale of the fourth volume on April 20, 2007, the magazine was sold bimonthly until its final issue, the fifteenth volume released on February...

on August 20, 2008. Another manga adaptation by Sorahiko Mizushima started serialization in Kadokawa Shoten

Kadokawa Shoten

is a well-known Japanese publishing company based in Tokyo, Japan. Kadokawa has published both manga novels and magazines, such as Newtype magazine...

's Comptiq

Comptiq

is a Japanese computer game magazine, first published in 1983, by Kadokawa Shoten. The name "Comptiq" came from combining the words "computer" and "boutique". Originally a PC magazine, its focus shifted from computers to computer games. As of September 2003, it has been known as a "MediaMix Game...

magazine on May 9, 2009.

Anime

An anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 series adaptation produced by Studio DEEN

Studio DEEN

is a Japanese company that produces anime. Three years after Sunrise was founded in 1972, Studio Deen was established by Sunrise's members in 1975. As a result of this, anime shows such as Cowboy Bebop that were produced by Sunrise may have had assistance from Studio Deen.-Produced anime:* Urusei...

 and directed by Takuya Sato

Takuya Sato

' is a Japanese script writer and director of anime.-Works:*Street Fighter II V Assistant Director*Harimogu Harry Storyboard, Episode Director*NieA 7 Director, Script*Princess Tutu eps. 6,11 Script...

began airing in Japan on October 2, 2009.

A second anime series has been announced in March 2011.

Theme songs

Opening theme

1. "Treasure" - .

Ending themes

1. - (ep 1)
2. - (ep 2)
3. - , vice president & treasurer (ep 3)
4. - (ep 4)
5. - , president & secretary (ep 5)
6. - (ep 6)
7. - (ep 7)
8. - , vice president & treasurer (ep 8)
9. - (ep 9)
10. - , president & secretary (ep 10)
11. - (ep 11)
12. - (ep 12)

Episode list

>

#	Episode title	Original air date